Para ‘di lagi umasa sa ibang bansa: Lapid pushes for creation of National Emergency Stockpile for calamities

By JOHN CARLO M. CAHINHINAN

MANILA – Senator Lito Lapid is pushing for a proposed legislation that seeks to address the government’s stockpiling problem especially during calamities and disasters.

Under Lapid’s proposal, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) is mandated to establish the National Emergency Stockpile which shall be the central repository and supply reserve.

The facility aims to safe-keep food items, medicines, vaccines, tents, beds, blankets and other emergency-related articles and equipment.

According to Lapid, the current COVID-19 pandemic presents a cautionary tale on “the need for the country to institutionalize a system for the stockpiling of essential goods and materials.”

“Layunin ng aking isinusulong na panukala na maiwasan na umasa ang ating bansa tuwing may kalamidad, sa supply na magmumula sa ibang bansa na pihadong mahal ang presyo at malamang pa ay hindi rin sapat para tugunan ang ating pangangailangan,” said Lapid.

Lapid noted that at the start of the pandemic, the country suffered from the looming shortage of medical supplies such as face masks and personal protective equipment (PPE).

This problem according to Lapid has “severely affected the performance and safety of our frontliners.”

Worse, five months into this public health emergency, shortages of PPE continue to cripple our healthcare workers, exacerbating the risk of exposure to the disease.

“Responsibilidad ng ating gobyerno na pangalagaan ang kapakanan ng ating mga kababayan lalo sa gitna ng kalamidad at mga emergency, at magagawa lamang iyan kung may sapat tayong supply ng gamot, pagkain at basic commodities,” he added.

A stockpile is defined as “an accumulation of some desired material created to ensure future supply.”

Lapid stressed that he goal of stockpiling, in a national scale, is to reduce the country’s vulnerability to unforseeable production and supply-chain disruptions especially during emergencies and disasters.

He added that once the National Emergency Stockpile is created, “it must include in its reserve vaccines, antidotes, other critical medical supplies and essential raw materials.”

“Sisiguruhin din natin na ang bawat rehiyon sa bansa ay may stockpile ng gamot at basic commodities para anumang oras magkaroon ng kalamidad at mangailanganin ng supply ng gamot o pagkain ay mabilis itong maipamamahagi sa ating mga kababayan,” he added.

The actual locations of the stockpile will also be kept strictly confidential and not be publicly disseminated. The bill also provides for the monitoring of the quantity, volume and the dates of expiration and shelf lives of the items and materials included in the stockpile.

“Dapat ding ligtas ang mga nakareserbang gamot, pagkain at medical equipment mula sa pagnanakaw at pati sa disgrasyang hatid ng mga sakunang tulad ng sunog at lindol,” said Lapid.

Source: Latest Politics News Today (Politics.com.ph)